PAPA

51st National Day
August 31, 2008 (Sunday)

Erra is pregnant
August 30, 2008 (Saturday)

Her husband Engku Emran Engku Zainal Abidin whom she married in October last year confirmed the good news.

“Yes, it’s true that Erra is pregnant, it’s been two months already.

“When I got to know of the news that Erra was pregnant recently, we did not want to spread the news to the public and we didn’t want to make a fuss out of it,” Emran, who is Suria FM chief operating officer, told The Star’s Malay news portal MStar.

“We decided to let only the family members know about it. We were afraid that if it was made known earlier on, it may not happen,” he said.

Two weeks ago, the doctor gave the all's well on the baby.

“It seems that now I have to make it known because reporters have found out about it and it cannot be kept a secret,” said Emran.

Erra, 34, had a miscarriage in March.

“Hopefully, Erra’s fans can pray that her baby is safe and healthy always,” said Emran.

Emran said his wife was still actively acting because she had signed a one-year contract with Astro in April.

“Now she is shooting for a film where she takes on the role of a mechanic.

“I'm a bit anxious because the character is rather aggressive and I have reminded her to be careful,” said Emran, who does not mind about the gender of the baby.

He said that if possible, he did not want to know about it until the baby was safely delivered.

“Only then will it be a surprise!” he said, adding that the fasting month would be meaningful for them this year as it would be the three of them.

“Erra is busy preparing for Raya including thinking about the colour of our Raya outfits.

“Insya Allah, on Hari Raya, we will celebrate in my hometown in Penang and Erra’s hometown in Sungai Choh in Rawang.” Source from The Star.

Tens of Thousands Throng Parenthood Expo
August 26, 2008 (Tuesday)

Tens of thousands thronged the Mid Valley Exhibition Centre in Kuala Lumpur over the weekend to get the best deals available for children-parents related products at the 4th Parenthood Expo 2008.

Organised by HareNet Communications Sdn Bhd, the fair offered unbeatable great deals and promotions of maternity and baby care products and services all under one roof. Organiser said that between 40,000 and 50,000 of visitors streaming in non-stop the entire three days to check out all the 100 exhibition booths. Nestle Products, Wyeth, Danone Dumex, Pigeon, Bebe, Combi, Huggies, Heinz, Pureen, StemLife were some of the major companies that participated in the Expo.

Hot Pregnant Mama of the Year 2008 contest was held during the first day of the expo. 10 glowing pregnant mothers managed to capture the crowd's attention as they paraded on the stage in their best outfits with their voluptuous body. Yennie Lee walked away with the Grand Prize consisted of RM2,500 worth of baby products and services, while first runner-up, Sonia Malini took away RM500 worth of baby products, followed by the second runner-up,  Jessie Hoo who brought home RM300 worth of baby products. The remaining seven finalists also received a hamper each as a token of appreciation for their participation.

The excitement heightened during the Preliminary Search for Parenthood's Modern Mom & Baby of the Year 2008. All 20 semi-finalists, dressed in their best outfits, paraded on the stage with their children, showcasing their confidence and intelligence as a modern mum. Apart from the catwalk, each contestant was directed with two questions by the judges. The contestants were judged based on their spontaneity and creativity in answering questions, as well as their personality and confidence on stage. After a tough round of competition, the 20 semi-finalists were short-listed to 10 finalists.

Madam Jessie Koo and her son, Jaden Ng emerged as the grand prize winners of the Parenthood's Modern Mom & Baby of the Year 2008, who brought home RM3,000 worth of baby products. She also won the chance to be featured on the cover of Parenthood magazine for October issue. Claiming the second prize worth RM800 of baby products were Madam Chan Hui Fen and her son, Joshua Lim. Madam Emily Sheela and her daughter Rhea Arevind clinched the third prize title, bringing home RM500 worth of baby products. These winners are also entitled to a one-year free subscription of any magazine title under Today Publishing.

However, the remaining seven finalists did not leave empty-handed, as they also received hampers of baby products from the co-sponsors as consolation prizes, so were those semi-finalist who were not selected for the final round.  

The 4th Parenthood Expo was a remarkably successful event, filled with lots of fun, joys and excitement.

I'll be posting more photos later. Need to get some rest now after a hectic weekend. ;-)

Baby-short Singapore to double spending on incentives
August 20, 2008 (Wednesday)

Singapore will double its spending on incentives to address a severe shortage of babies threatening the country's future, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said in a television broadcast Monday.

He unveiled a series of measures, including extended maternity leave, which he said add up to more than 700 million dollars (496 million US), "about double what we are spending today on child incentives."

"This package will make a difference to many couples, but I can't guarantee that it will solve our problem, because it is a deep problem," he said in his key annual policy speech.

Government figures say Singapore had a fertility rate of 1.29 babies born per woman in 2007, well below the 2.1, or at least two children per woman, needed for the population to replace itself naturally.

Singapore had a population of 4.59 million last year, including more than one million foreign workers and their families.

Lee announced that government-paid maternity leave will increase to 16 weeks from 12.

Among other measures, he said either parent will be able to take a week of unpaid leave for child-care purposes during the first two years of a baby's life.

He also said there will be improvements to the "baby bonus" scheme for first-time parents and to tax incentives to encourage mothers to work.

The government has previously offered cash incentives for couples having more than two children, encouraged foreigners to become citizens, and eased up on previously taboo subjects like sex.

But those incentives failed to adequately address the baby shortage.

Lee touched on the problem earlier this month in another speech on the eve of Singapore's national day, when he said the city-state needed enough babies "to secure our long-term future." - AFP

A Gentle Reminder - 1st Anniversary Giveway
August 19, 2008 (Tuesday)

To all successful members that are going to receive mysterious gifts from us, please take note that you're require to provide the correct reference that match your login ID during the verification process by us. Our friendly staff have been trained not to entertain or even argue with those members that are not even able to provide these simple piece of info to us. Hope you all do understand as it's purely for a smoother process. 

Suggest to print-out the email just in case you've got problem memorize it. 

I'll be away these few days as I need to consolidate everything for the exposition, phew. ;-p 

Hope to see you people at the Parenthood Expo & have a great weekend!

Lotsa Thanks for Your Support
August 17, 2008 (Sunday)

On July 14, I wrote about giveaway in conjunction with CoocooMamaPapa.com 1st anniversary celebration. I'm sure by now, those members that have successfully uploaded their cute little tot(s) before 15th August already received email notification from us. Ah, all the photos are so adorable.

In the meantime, one of the member's username apparently doesn't appear in the gallery due to technical error. I've posted the lovely baby image above and if it's your baby, please contact us by emailing to webmaster@coocoomampapa.com

By the way, remember to collect your gifts onsite as I do not have any extra money to post it over to you. ;-)

Egyptian woman gives birth to septuplets
August 17, 2008 (Sunday)

                                            (AP Photo/Tarek Fawzy)

A 27-year-old Egyptian woman gave birth to septuplets early Saturday in the coastal city of Alexandria, family members and the hospital director said.

Ghazala Khamis was in good condition after having a blood transfusion during her Caesarean section due to bleeding, said Emad Darwish, director of the El-Shatbi Hospital where she gave birth.

The newborns, four boys and three girls, weigh between 3.2 pounds and 6.17 pounds and are in stable condition, Darwish said. They have been placed in incubators in four different hospitals that have special premature baby units, he said.

"This is a very rare pregnancy — something I have never witnessed over my past 33 years in this profession," Darwish told The Associated Press by phone from the hospital.

Darwish decided to carry out the Caesarean section at the end of Khamis' eighth month of pregnancy due to the pressure on her kidneys. He said Khamis, who already has three daughters, took fertility drugs in an effort to have a son.

Khamis, the wife of a farmer in the northern Egyptian province of Beheira, was admitted to the hospital two months earlier, Darwish said.

"From the initial checkup, I say that none of the babies have any sort of deformities or incomplete organs," Darwish said.

The woman's brother, Khamis Khamis, said even though his sister was trying to conceive more children so she could have a son, the family was astonished when they found out she would give birth to multiple babies.

"We thought about an abortion, but then we felt it's religiously forbidden. So we said 'Let God's will prevail,'" he told the AP by phone.

Egypt's health minister announced that the seven babies will receive free milk and diapers for two years, the brother added.

Source

Phelps Phenomenon - Beijing 2008 Olympic Games
August 17, 2008 (Sunday)

                                                   Source: Reuters

A combination photo shows Michael Phelps of the U.S. holding each of his eight gold medals in the swimming competition at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. Michael Phelps went where no man has been before to win a record eighth gold at one Olympics and better Mark Spitz's landmark 1972 feat.

If Phelps is a Malaysian, he is 8 million Ringgit richer by now.

To Chong Wei, all the best - Malaysian Support You!  

Breastfeeding Awareness Month - 4th Parenthood Expo (Part 4)
August 14, 2008 (Thursday)

                              Artist's impression of BEBE's Nursing Room

August is always the month to promote breastfeeding around the world. In conjunction with the 4th Parenthood Expo 2008, the organiser has decided to use a theme called 'Breastfeeding - Best for Baby. Best for Mom'. A popular theme used by various quarters previously in promoting breastfeeding.

In line with supporting breastfeeding awareness month, the organiser provides a nursing room sponsored by BEBE for mothers to breastfeed in privacy. Breast milk from mom is specially created for baby. Foremilk (the milk that comes out when baby first suckles) quenches thirst and hindmilk (the latter milk that contains more fat) satisfies hunger. So, start building your baby's immune system by breastfeeding now!

Many offers of home for baby
August 14, 2008 (Thursday)

MCA Youth Public Services and Complaints Bureau deputy chief Rodney Soon said he had been receiving many enquiries from people around the country since the story was highlighted in the media.

“The calls came from as far as Alor Star, Kuala Lumpur and Malacca,” he said.

Soon added that he would pass the numbers to Ling’s parents if they want to give up the baby for adoption.

He said he was glad so many were concerned about Ling’s situation. It was reported yesterday that Ling, the sex victim of a 19-year-old, was now five months' pregnant.

Ling had come to know the boy via short message service (SMS) and decided to meet him after they had been keeping in touch for about two weeks.

The culprit shot nude pictures of her and also a video of their act and used these to blackmail her to have sex with him regularly.

The teenager disappeared after learning that Ling had missed her period.

Soon said that he received a death threat via SMS about 11am yesterday.

“It could be the teenager who sent the SMS,” he said, adding that he was not intimidated by the SMS and would lodge a police report.

“I will also talk to the girl and get her to cooperate with the police to come up with a photofit of the culprit,” he said, adding that the teenager used to work at a mobile phone shop at Taman Jaya Mas.

Soon urged anyone with information to contact him at 019- 7713 912.

Johor Baru North deputy OCPD Supt Mohd Akhir Ishak said that police were trying to track down the teenager to get his assistance in investigations.

Those with information are urged to contact the police hotline at 07-2212 999.

'Sacrifice'
August 13, 2008 (Wednesday)

I came across an article by Anna Tham in The Sun titled 'Making the right choices' about various option in bringing up children.

An excerpt:
I HAD a casual chat with the father of my daughter’s classmate one day and learned that like most families, both he and his wife work and leave their children in the care of maids.

They hired two – one to care for the children and the other for housekeeping. One parent sends them to school in the morning and a hired driver fetches them home.

Due to the many horror stories about foreign maids abusing children, they had equipped their house with cameras to monitor the home while they are at work.

This scenario is very common in Malaysian homes. Gone are the days when the father is the sole breadwinner while the mother stays home to tend to the family’s needs.

Well, my family is one of them as described above except I've only one maid and no driver. Last year, it was reported that 80 percent of the employers for foreign maids are Chinese. In my own observation, the Malays tend to have more children than the Chinese. So, how come the Chinese form the biggest percentage of the employers for foreign maids?? The key answer is how much you're willing to 'sacrifice' for your children here.

When I said 'sacrifice' here, I mean how much you're willing to surrender your other interests. I've catagorised some of our common interests as follows:

Family - Raising children, Husband & Wife relationship;
Career - Work = Satisfaction + Money;
Entertainment - Travel, Playing etc.;
Socialising - New/Old Friends & Family Relatives interaction;
Sports - Any physical activity engaged in competitively;
Personal Wellbeing - Dietary, Sleeping, Grooming etc.;
Self Development - Learning, Researching etc.

We've only 24 hours a day to pursue our common interests. Majority of our time will usually spend on Career & Personal Wellbeing. That has left us very little time for our other common interests. Some lucky parents like Anna Tham had chosen to spend more time on Family interest. As for myself, I'm balancing my time on Career, Personal Wellbeing & Family. I'm a lazy butt, which is why I've sacrificed Sports (not that I don't like sports) and also cut back on Entertainment, Socialising & Self Development interests. However, we will be changing our priorities throughout our life from time to time to fit the current scenerio.   

New arrivals on 8/8/08
August 11, 2008 (Monday)

Pickup story from The Star. While the United States can boast of having two eight-pound eight-ounce babies born at 8.08am on Aug 8, Malaysia has its own star – a baby born at 8.08am the same day, weighing 2.88kg.

Computer analyst Yeap Heng Yeng, 36, had been worried as her third child was two weeks overdue.

“I was worried about a miscarriage. Then, the severe cramps began to kick in suddenly and I was rushed to the hospital,” said Yeap who then gave birth to a baby boy who weighed 2.88kg at 8.08am on Aug 8.

The baby has not been named.

08.08.08
August 08, 2008 (Friday)

August 8 is a day to remember for most of us. Firstly, it's countdown to Olympics Games begins. How I wish I'm in Beijing now to witness one of the greatest show on earth tonight. Anyway, no problem, we still have Stadium Astro to watch all the ongoing games in Malaysia.

In Klang, it was reported a total of 238 couples will tie the knot at the Hokkien Association today to coincide with the date 08.08.08.

As for myself, I've attended the Official Grand Opening of BABYLOVE'S 1ST AND ONLY FLAGSHIP SHOWROOM at Pandan Perdana KL with YB Tan Kok Wai and YB Jenice Lee as the special guests for the ribbon cutting ceremony. There were a lion-dance performance and luncheon buffet being served to the invited guests.

If you happen to be in Cheras, check out their store at 16 Jalan Perdana 4/8 Pandan Perdana 55300 Kuala Lumpur KL

My Younger L'il Princess 1st Birthday
August 07, 2008 (Thursday)

                                    Stop cooing 'Mei Mei', blow the candle!

Today is my younger Coo Coo's 1st birthday. I've really no idea what is the best way to celebrate a child's 1st birthday. The last time that we've celebrated my elder Coo Coo's 1st birthday were by heading straight to a fast food restaurant to have a sumptuous meal there. At that time, we've thought that since she likes to eat mash potatoes so much and not so clear about what going on around her, guess KFC is the best way to go since we've a serious craving for fried chicken. No birthday cake, toys or whatsover except new clothes for her.

This time round, we can't repeat the same feat again like before because my younger Coo Coo's mental & physical development progress faster than we've expected. Not that she is abnormal but she has started to crawl at 4 months, walking and name calling like 'Mama' & 'Papa' by 11 months. Okay, maybe I'm just naive to compare to her elder sister; afterall my world is just revolve around them.

Yesterday, Mama bought a small cake with strawberry favor from Angel Cake House that cost RM25 for my younger Coo Coo. Err...not very fair to my elder Coo Coo, right? We've done the usual birthday custom in the morning like singing birthday song, blowing birthday cake candles (done by all of us!), photo shots bla bla bla before we went out to work.  

Coming back to places of celebration for a child's 1st birthday. Where is the best place to bring a responsive birthday baby & a tiny tots for a simple birthday outing without burning a hole in your pocket? To meet the criteria of good food and child-friendly restaurants have never been easy. With 'Kids Eat Free' in mind, we've decided to dine at Chili's in KLCC. It cost me approx RM50 for two main courses with two choices of 'mini' meal from the kids menu. Well, the Mexican foods obviously are delicious & filling.

Somehow, right after the meal, we've fallen into the trap of Haagen Danz Ice Cream. When you opt for two scoops to be served separately, it has cost me approx RM30! Aarghh!!

We've made a pit stop at newly open Toys "R" Us before headed back home. After today, I wish I could come out with a guide on child's friendly restaurants in KL/PJ. Any contributors? 

Twins for Lisa Marie Presley too!
August 06, 2008 (Wednesday)

After Angeline Jolie, we now hear that Lisa Marie Presley, the only child of the late Elvis Presley and Priscilla Presley is pregnant with twins.

Presley, 40, who is expected to give birth in the fall, has two teenage children, daughter Riley, 19, and son Benjamin, 15, with ex Danny Keough.

The twins will be Presley's first children with husband Michael Lockwood.

Another fertility treatment of IVF here?

Sex for food
August 05, 2008 (Tuesday)

Is this for real!? If it's true, we should count ourselves lucky to be in this part of the world.

It was reported in the Reuters, rising food prices around the world are likely to drive poor women to trade sex for basic goods like fish and cooking oil, raising the risk of new AIDS infections, U.N officials say. Read full article here.

Meet Vivienne & Knox Jolie-Pitt
August 04, 2008 (Monday)

I'm a little confuse about the word 'EXCLUSIVE' now because here you can see Hello! & People featured the so called exclusive photos of Jolie-Pitt family of eight inside their magazine!

They are just 3 weeks old, but twins Knox Léon and Vivienne Marcheline are about to take the world by storm.

Indonesia seeks better terms for its maids
August 03, 2008 (Sunday)

It was reported in The Star today that Indonesia will propose amended terms for the recruitment of its domestic helpers, who form the largest number of foreign maids in the country.

Topping the list will be higher wages and time off for them. A proper mechanism will also be sought to resolve disputes between the helpers and their employers.

The amendments to a labour memorandum of understanding signed between both countries in 2006 involving domestic helpers will be presented at a coming consultation between both sides that Malaysia will host.

The Indonesians wanted to set a minimum wage of RM500 for their domestic helpers then, but agreed to back down after this condition was rejected by Malaysia.

Indonesian domestic helpers, who number about 300,000 here, are mostly being paid between RM400 and RM500 monthly.

An Indonesian embassy official said the latest wage increase being sought would likely be between RM50 and RM100.

I've never had any qualm about the proposal to increase wage for its maids. In fact, I think the minimum wages should be between RM800 - RM1,000 taking into consideration of their long working hours to carry out the household chores. What really amused me is the statement made by the Indonesia ambassador to Malaysia Da'i Bachtiar. He said the rising cost of living had also affected Indonesians working in Malaysia. Since the entire report is about Indonesian maids, I assume he is referring to their domestic helpers.

He told The Star in an interview “If costs are rising here due to higher fuel prices and food prices are going up, then our workers too should be entitled to what is deemed fit by the Malaysian Government”.

Dear GEN Mr. Bachtiar, please be informed that the rising cost of living doesn't really affected Indonesian domestic helpers but their Malaysian employers. I would say majority if not 100% employers have been providing reasonable accomodation for its maids at no cost. Apart from the free lodging, the perks also comes with free meals, free personal care products or maybe occasionally free holidays for some. Basically, the maid will hardly spend a single cent using their hard earn salary.

Dear GEN Mr. Bachtiar, what you failed to address is the high fees being paid to Indonesian agents by us. To make matter worse, our government too failed to control our own maid agencies that imposed exorbitant charges on us as well. With those high asking fees by all these agents, they're profiting at the expense of their own countrymen.

Dear GEN Mr. Bachtiar, I was informed that you're a master of cleaning-up mess caused by your fallen predecessors. How I wish you can help us to clean-up this mess once and for all. Right now, agents from both countries are blaming each other for the high fees. Read here & here. 

We're not interested to know who is right or wrong but all we're asking is to stop exploiting us as the employers and the maids as well by these unscrupulous agents.

Here are tips that may solve the problem. It was reported that Persatuan Agensi Pembantu Rumah Asing Malaysia (PAPA) is asking RM2,415 and their Indon counterpart agent fee is RM2,180 only. In total, it cost RM4,595 just for the agency fees of both countries. So, why still ask for about RM3,300 to covers the maid’s salary for the first six months of service from the employers in advance? 

Why? why? and why?? Who 'putih-putih' pocketed the first six months salary of the maid? 

Can someone here shed some light on this?